Telephone systems

Abstract

A mobile telephone system is provided with a new architecture for dealing with voice internet protocol traffic. Real time traffic from mobile stations ( 22 ) is routed by a public land mobile telephone network internet protocol core ( 20 ) directly to one of two media gateways ( 28,32 ) respectively serving a plain switched telecommunication network/integrated services digital network ( 26 ) and an internet protocol backbone ( 30 ) without passing through the usual general packet radio system (GPRS) specific gateway.

1. A mobile radio system comprising;
 a plurality of mobile stations linked to a radio network controller; 
 a first network comprising at least one of a plain switched telephone network and an integrated services digital network; 
 a second network comprising a public internet system; 
 a first real time media gateway providing access to and from the first network, a second real time media gateway providing access to and from the second network, and a third general packet radio system (GPRS) specific gateway providing access to and from the second network; and 
 an internet protocol connection system which responds to the address in the headers of the data stream flowing between the radio network controller and its destination to direct the data stream to its destination through a one of said first, second and third gateways, selected in accordance with the nature of the data in the stream whereby real time data is directed through either said first or said second gateway without passing through said third gateway, wherein the first and second gateways comprise a common gateway. 
 
   
   
     2. A system according to  claim 1 , wherein said first gateway is a time division multiplexing to real time transport protocol media gateway. 
   
   
     3. A system according to  claim 1 , wherein said second gateway is real time transport protocol to real time transport protocol media gateway. 
   
   
     4. A system according to  claim 1 , wherein the third gateway is a gateway GPRS support node (GGSN). 
   
   
     5. A system according to  claim 1 , wherein the internet protocol connection system comprises a public land mobile telephone network internet protocol core network. 
   
   
     6. A system according to  claim 1 , wherein the path from the radio network controller to the third gateway involves a serving GPRS service node (SGSN). 
   
   
     7. A system according to  claim 6 , including a media gateway controller for controlling said first, second and third gateways and said SGSN. 
   
   
     8. A system according to  claim 1 , including a call control server for controlling calls between said third gateway and said second network. 
   
   
     9. A mobile radio system comprising:
 a plurality of mobile stations linked to a radio network controller; 
 a first network comprising at least one of a plain switched telephone network and an integrated services digital network; 
 a second network comprising a public internet system; 
 a first real time media gateway providing access to and from the second network, a second real time media gateway providing access to and from the second network, and a third general packet radio system (GPRS) specific gateway providing access to and from the second network; and 
 an internet protocol connection system which responds to the address in the headers of the data stream flowing between the radio network controller and its destination to direct the data stream to its destination through a one of said first, second and third gateways, selected in accordance with the nature of the data in the stream whereby real time data is directed through either said first or said second gateway without passing through said third gateway, wherein the path from the radio network controller to the third gateway involves a serving GPRS service node (SGSN), the system comprising a media gateway controller for controlling said first, second and third gateways and said SGSN. 
 
   
   
     10. A mobile radio system comprising:
 a plurality of mobile stations linked to a radio network controller; 
 a first network comprising at least one of a plain switched telephone network and an integrated services digital network; 
 a second network comprising a public internet system; 
 a first real time media gateway providing access to and from the first network, a second real time media gateway providing access to and from the second network, and a third general packet radio system (GPRS) specific gateway providing access to and from the second network; and 
 an internet protocol connection system which responds to the address in the headers of the data stream to its destination through a one of said first, second and third gateways, selected in accordance with the nature of the data in the stream whereby real time data is directed through either said first or second gateway without passing through said third gateway, the system including a call control server for controlling calls between said third gateway and said second network.